Parenting Gamers

Let’s Play Super Meat Boy

This is my next “Let’s Play” video of Super Meat Boy.

This series highlights high quality games I recommend to you as a parent. These are games that your gamer may enjoy with content you will approve.

Transcript:

Hello, my name is Eric Rogers from parentinggamers.com and this is my “Let’s Play” video of Super Meat Boy. In this series of videos, I am playing different games that I recommend to you as a parent. These are high quality games your gamer will enjoy with content you will approve.

So let’s play Super Meat Boy.

Super Meat Boy is a hard-as-nails platformer. The player plays as Meat Boy, a red square of meat trying to save his girlfriend Bandage Girl from Dr. Fetus. He runs and jumps to avoid obstacles like pits, spikes, spinning blades, and other things trying to kill him.

Here you get an idea of the gameplay. As you can see, Meat Boy can jump off and slide down walls. This mechanic, while seemingly simple, allows the developers to create some extremely difficult level. The levels you see here are purposefully simple to help the player learn the controls.

The thing that makes Super Meat Boy great even though it is difficult is how quickly the player can try again when he fails. As you can see here, I died several times on this level. Each time, I was back up and playing again extremely quickly. This helps keep the frustration level down because failure does not set you back that far.

Another cool thing this games does is give you a replay of all the attempts you made when you complete a level. It is not uncommon to try 50 times or more on later levels, which can make this replay pretty cool to watch.

Super Meat Boy is one of my favorite games. It is currently sitting at the top of my Steam library as the game I have played the most. That being said, it is not for everyone. It’s difficulty can make it more frustrating than fun for some. But, if you gamer likes hard games and likes a challenge, it is a great one.

Super Meat Boy is rated T, which is the equivalent of a PG-13 movie rating. It is available on the PC, Mac, Linux, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation Vita.

If you enjoyed this video, please visit me at parentinggamers.com and sign-up for my email list. Signing up with get you notifications when I release new videos and give you a free copy of my e-book, Connecting with Your Teenager Through Video Games. Thanks for watching.

Let’s Play Costume Quest 2

This is my next “Let’s Play” video of Costume Quest 2.

This series highlights high quality games I recommend to you as a parent. These are games that your gamer may enjoy with content you will approve.

Transcript:

Hello, my name is Eric Rogers from parentinggamers.com and, in the spirit of October and Halloween, this is my “Let’s Play” video of Costume Quest 2. In this series of videos, I am playing different games that I recommend to you as a parent. These are high quality games your gamer will enjoy with content you will approve.

So let’s play Costume Quest 2.

Costume Quest 2 is a turn-based role-playing game, or RPG. The player controls a group of kids who just want to trick-or-treat on Halloween. Their plans are thwarted by an evil dentist, Dr. Orel Write, who is set on ending Halloween forever. The kids collect candy and costumes in their efforts to stop him.

The hook to Costume Quest 2 is it’s costume/combat system. The player unlocks new abilities by gathering materials for different costumes. In this fight, you can see I am using a Pterodactyl, a candy corn, and a super hero costume. Normally, the player would replace the candy corn costume because the character using it can’t help in the fight, thus putting the player at a disadvantage. However, there is an achievement for finishing the game using the candy corn costume in every fight, which is why I am using it here.

As you can see, the combat is turn-based. Each character gets a chance to perform different moves on their turn. The player tries to time button presses to the prompt on the screen. The closer she gets to perfect, the more damage the character will do. This also works when the enemy attacks. The closer the player gets to being perfect with those prompts, the less damage she takes.

Costume Quest 2 is a fun game I use to help me get in the holiday spirit. I love pulling it out at the beginning of October to help me get the Halloween juices flowing. It is rated E10+, which is the equivalent of a PG movie rating. It is available on the PC, Mac, Linux, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Wii U.

If you enjoyed this video, please visit me at parentinggamers.com and sign-up for my email list. Signing up with get you notifications when I release new videos and give you a free copy of my e-book, Connecting with Your Teenager Through Video Games. Thanks for watching.

Game Spotlight – Bastion

This is my next “Let’s Play” video of Bastion.

This series highlights high quality games I recommend to you as a parent. These are games that your gamer may enjoy with content you will approve.

Transcript:

Hello, my name is Eric Rogers from parentinggamers.com and this is my “Let’s Play” video of Bastion. In this series of videos, I am playing different games that I recommend to you as a parent. These are high quality games your gamer will enjoy with content you will approve.

So let’s play Bastion.

Bastion is an action adventure game where you play as a young kid who has survived a catastrophic event. You can get an idea of the gameplay in this clip.

There are a few reasons I recommend Bastion. Besides being a fun game (which it is), I really love both the art style and the music. This game looks and sounds beautiful, in my opinion.

And then there is the narrator. The way they use him to tell the story and comment on what you are doing brings a wrinkle to this game I have not seen in any other. It’s a cool little twist.

Bastion is rated E10+, which is the equivalent of a PG movie rating. It is available on the PC, Xbox 360, PS4, and iOS devices.

If you enjoyed this video, please visit me at parentinggamers.com and sign-up for my email list. Signing up with get you notifications when I release new videos and give you a free copy of my e-book, Connecting with Your Teenager Through Video Games. Thanks for watching.

Let’s Play – Portal 2

This is my next “Let’s Play” video of Portal 2.

This series highlights high quality games I recommend to you as a parent. These are games that your gamer may enjoy with content you will approve.

Portal 2 is one of my favorites. It is a puzzle game that will engage your gamer’s brain. It is also a great game for you if you are interested in learning to play with your gamer.

Transcript

Hello, my name is Eric Rogers from parentinggamers.com and this is my “Let’s Play” video of Portal 2. In this series of videos, I am playing different games that I recommend to you as a parent. These are high quality games your gamer will enjoy with content you will approve.

So let’s play one of my favorites, Portal 2.

Portal 2 is a first-person shooter but not in the traditional sense. It is played from the first-person perspective, like games like Call of Duty or Halo. However, instead of carrying a weapon used for destruction, the character carries a “portal gun”. This gun shoots orange and blue portals, which the player uses to solve puzzles. The portals allow the player to reach areas she would not be able to otherwise or manipulate objects in the environment.

Here is an example of the types of puzzle the player is trying to solve. The objective is to open the door and get through it. This is done by manipulating the light bridge and laser while avoiding the turret in the back of the room.

Watching me play this, you can see why I recommend Portal 2 as a great starter game for parents who want to start playing with their gamer. If you have ever watched your gamer play something like Call of Duty, you know how fast paced and frenetic it is. It can be very intimidating if you are just starting out and trying to learn the controls. Portal 2, however, is much slower paced so you can learn the mechanics and controls without the pressure.

The other reason I recommend you start learning with Portal 2 is the co-op feature. While I am solving this puzzle on my own, there are also puzzles that require 2 people to finish. Sitting down and playing through them with your gamer is a great way to connect.

There is one last benefit of Portal 2 that I want to mention. This game is a very cerebral game. Some of the puzzles can get pretty challenging. If you gamer is playing this, she is definitely exercising her brain muscle.

Portal 2 is available on the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC. The regular price right now is $20 but it is frequently on sale on Steam for the PC for less than $5. At that price, it is definitely worth it.

If you enjoyed this video, please visit me at parentinggamers.com and sign-up for my email list. Signing up with get you notifications when I release new videos and give you a free copy of my e-book, Connecting with Your Teenager Through Video Games. Thanks for watching.

Let’s Play – Rogue Legacy

Today I am starting a new series of videos called “Let’s Play”. In this series, I will be playing a game I recommend to you as a parent. These are high quality games your gamer may enjoy with content you will find acceptable.

The first game I am recommending is Rogue Legacy.

If you enjoyed this video, please sign-up for my email list to receive notifications when I release new ones.